Knowledge, attitude and perception on the adoption of evidence-based practice among practitioners of general dentistry

Abstract

Evidence based dentistry (EBD) is the “conscientious, explicit and judicious use of the best evidence in making decisions about care of individual patients”, as defined by the American Dental Association. Bridging clinical expertise and patient values, it involves the systematic assessment of scientific evidence, linking it to a patient’s medical condition and with a scientifically backed framework, the dentist begins to treat the patient. Its basis lies in choosing the right type of evidence which could be highly patient subjective. The present study aims to assess the knowledge, attitude and perception prevalent among currently practicing dentists regarding EBD and their willingness to incorporate it into their practice. The study was a survey conducted using an online questionnaire on Google forms, with specifically framed, about 16 questions, that would elicit the current status of EBD among Dental UG students, interns and practising dentists. The responses obtained were statistically analysed using SPSS v26 (IBM.inc.,USA). From the responses, it can be observed that there is only a vague awareness on EBD and a satisfactory level of willingness to incorporate it into one’s practice, given that constraints in doing so are addressed. The study was handy in inferring the current status of EBD among today’s practitioners and would be useful in devising ways of overcoming any limitations in incorporating the same into routine clinical practice.